Today's Word: NORMAL!

"Hi, my name is Dr. Jones and your child is completely healthy."

Wow did it feel good to heard him say that! As many of you know, our son was discovered having Choroid Plexus Cysts. I wrote about it earlier this month. (You can find that post here.) This morning, we had a level 2 ultrasound with a specialist to take a closer look. Throughout the entire ultrasound, the word that we kept hearing as the nurse was looking at our son was "normal".

The nurse gave our son a complete physical. She did everything but make him turn his head and cough. ;) She measured bones, looked for a cleft lip, examined his hands and feet. After each one, she literally had an electronic check list and said "normal". I loved it! He even had hiccups while she was monitoring his heart beat.

Anyway, it has been a big prayer request for Erin and I. Thank you, thank you, thank you to all of you who have been praying for us and our son. While I was encouraged by the research we did, it made Erin even more scared. Her worries weren't without cause since both the nurse and the doctor went into more detail concerning Trisomy 18.

Concerning the CPC's, he originally had four of them. But now only 1 and it measures 4 millimeters. (Thank you God.) They expect that one to be gone in the next few weeks!

Immediately following the good news, we said a quick prayer giving thanks to the only One who is control of anything. He definitely gets the glory in this!

What now?

Well, no more ultrasounds. We will still have the "normal" amount of checkups. Our next one is on the 10th @ 11:30. The only thing Erin says she's worried about now is giving birth. :) (I wouldn't look forward to it either.)


The following is the same ultrasound pic with his features revealed.






On Monday I gave you an ad that contained a Jeep dot-to-dot. Did you do it? Anyone? Bueller...Bueller... Well, if you still wanted to do it, don't look 'cause here's the answer.


Have a great weekend!

—b


Friday, March 30th, 2007/Ezra chapters 11–???

GOD'S MESSAGE FOR ME TODAY
This morning I purposely didn't get up since I haven't been feeling well and thought I needed the sleep. Excuses, excuses, I know. ;)

Copyright 2007, City Vision / John A. Mayer
You can purchase a copy of the CityView Report here.

SPIRITUAL TWIN CITIES NOTEABLES
• BY DEFINITION: A small church is a church that averages 100 or less people in average weekly worship attendance. The Twin Cities curretnly has 1,527 churches that fit into the small church category. Currently 54% of all churches in the Twin Cities are small churches. Nationally about 52% of all churches can be classified as a small church.

Can You Read This?

Cna yuo raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe tuo fo 100 anc.

i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh?

—b

Ezra 10:11

Thursday, March 29th, 2007/Ezra chapters 9 & 10

GOD'S MESSAGE FOR ME TODAY
"Now therefore, make confession to the LORD God of your fathers and do His will; and separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign wives."—Ezra 10:11

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO MY LIFE?
When we intentionally sin against God, having to repent and make amends ends up being not worth the sin in the first place. God gives us instruction for own good. Unfortunately we sometimes only see that after the fact.

Copyright 2007, City Vision / John A. Mayer
You can purchase a copy of the CityView Report here.

SPIRITUAL TWIN CITIES NOTEABLES
• More immigrant churches are located in suburban areas than in the urban areas of Minneapolis and St. Paul combined.

Afternoon Update

This afternoon I received an instant message from a fellow STEMmer who told me to check out the United States Post Office website (usps.com). The picture above is a screen shot. Obviously the U.S. government has been taken over by Darth Vader and company and their first act was to take over the post office. Interesting tactics. So for fellow Star Wars nerds, check it out and Hail Vader!


On a more serious note, the following is an excerpt from an email from my mom. It's concerning my aunt Ruth. We have a history of heart problems in the family so this is all-too familiar for us.

I wanted to fill you in on something that I am having checked out. Over the past few years I often would get out of breath with certain activities I would be doing. Since I was concentrating so much on my thyroid problems and getting that under control, I didn't give a thought to it. Over the past couple months, Paul has noticed it and has become very concerned. At home, when I walk up a flight of stairs carrying a couple pieces of wood, I get out of breath. When I walk across our parking lot at work I get out of breath.

I finally made a doctor's appointment to discuss what's going on and get things checked out. I have an appointment tomorrow at 10:45.

Anyway, I will keep you posted on what takes place. I would appreciate your prayers.

Thanks mom for the email and I'll add you to my prayer list Ruth!


Here is an answer to prayer from the CityView guy, aka. John Mayer.

Dear Bernt,

The new CV Reports are selling like hotcakes. Today someone ordered 100 for their conference in May at Eagle Brook Church.

In the past, the CityView Reports have been a moderate success, but this year is different. With continued improvements in design, an optional PowerPoint presentation, and a lower price tag, things seem to be going well. Hopefully those who purchase them will find the Lord's calling in putting the info to His use. Click here to get one for yourself!


Last but not least...United States vs Guatemala! The game itself will happen in about 45 minutes but my sources say it won't be broadcast til 8:00 tonight on ESPN2. For those of you who think soccer is boring, the last game our very own Landon Donovan scored a hat trick! USA! USA! USA!

—b

PT Crusin'

Yesterday we had an appointment with a salesman (Marc) at the Shakopee Dodge dealership. Before we even had the meeting, we were warned by several people, both office friends and family, to "just say no". Looking back, there was no better advise than that.

With our son on his way, it's time to face the fact that we are going to need a second vehicle. Our current vehicle, Betty the Jeep, is getting up there in both age (1998) and miles (151,000+). It's been great working at STEM since we really haven't needed a second vehicle but since Erin will be tackling the most important job of all, motherhood, she needs a ride.

Our criteria? Affordable. Safe. Affordable. 4 doors. Affordable. Car seat friendly. And, well...affordable. The PT Cruiser fit all of those except, well...you guessed it, affordable. It was just out of our price range. That's even with Marc bringing down the price and all-but begging us to help him out of his selling slump.

It's a good thing Erin was there. I have an extremely hard time saying no to people. (NOTE: If your kids have school fundraisers, send 'em my way.) Even if she wasn't there, I wouldn't have drove one home but it would have been a lot harder to "just say no".

Anyway, bottom line, Erin fell in love with the Cruiser and hopefully God will "just say yes" to one before our son comes.

—b

Wednesday, March 28th, 2007/Ezra chapters 6–8

GOD'S MESSAGE FOR ME TODAY
"You, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God which is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges that they may judge all the people who are in the province beyond the River, even all those who know the laws of your God; and you may teach anyone who is ignorant of them.—Ezra 7:25

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO MY LIFE?
This passage is loaded with life applications but what struck me was how I take the Bible for granted. "According to the wisdom of your God which is in your hand". It's God's word! His law, wisdom, soveringnty, love, and all His attributes. It's an honor to be able to read it!

Copyright 2007, City Vision / John A. Mayer
You can purchase a copy of the CityView Report here.

SPIRITUAL TWIN CITIES NOTEABLES
• In 1996 there was 256 Cult/Sect/Occult Sites located in the Twin Cities. 10 years later there were 626!

Hulk Defeats Superman!

By a score of 8 - 2, the majority of you thought the Incredible Hulk would beat Superman in a fight. Bravo! I did not expect that outcome. Thanks to everyone who participated.

For my next poll question, I'll dare to ask the never ending struggle for supremacy question...Do you save your marshmellows for last when eating Lucky Charms?


—b

Weekend Emoticons

My brother Leif, his wife Cyri, and their 7 month old daughter Kayle, visited us this weekend. It was filled with emotions. So what better way to convey emotions than with emoticons! (Yes, I'm saying this tongue in cheek.)

Bella would not leave Kayle alone. On the other hand, Kayle would not leave Bella alone.

Erin makes this picture look good. I make this picture look scary.

Taken at the T'Wolves game and summed up with, "AWWWWWW".
(Leif definitely got the "looks" in our family.)

Storybook finish. Kevin Garnett gets the shot at the buzzer for the win!

This game was a test of self control in not letting my emotions get the best of me. The Sioux deserved to win this one. But that doesn't mean I'll be routing for them to win the Frozen Four.

—b

Tuesday, March 27th, 2007/Ezra chapters 1–5

GOD'S MESSAGE FOR ME TODAY
Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah, and frightened them from building, and hired counselors against them to frustrate their counsel all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.—Ezra 4:4 & 5

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO MY LIFE?
We all know doing God's work isn't always easy. But how disheartening would it be knowing people were paid to "frustrate" your work. It just goes to show we never know what may be behind every obstacle we face. Thank God that He's behind us!

Copyright 2007, City Vision / John A. Mayer
You can purchase a copy of the CityView Report here.

SPIRITUAL TWIN CITIES NOTEABLES
• The Twin Cities Hispanic population more than doubled from 1990 to 2000. The metro was the eighth fastest growing Hispanic city in the US during the 90s. In 2004, Mexican President Fox visited the Twin Cities and a new Mexican consulate has now opened in St. Paul.

Dot-to-Dot

(click to enlarge)

While I scramble to get my wits together, here is an ad for Jeep out of the latest ESPN magazine. I will post the answer on Friday. Enjoy!

(HINT: If you decide to print this and complete it, I would recommend two different colors of ink. The blue is the background and the pink is the foreground. Have fun.)

—b

My Dad, Johnny Cash

This morning I got into work and ran the daily routine of checking email. But unlike daily routine, I got an email from my Dad, aka. Johnny Cash.

A quick background on my Dad (Bruce):
He works at Bethany Homes (a retirement home) in Fargo, ND. He has been there 20+ years and is the "Director of Engineering". Basically, he's Mr. Fix-it. He somehow knows how to fix anything from toilets to industrial sized boilers. Anyway, it's easy to see where I get my sense of humor from.

Here is an excerpt from the email:

It was a game show “What’s My Line”. They had other contestants and the final one is a celebrity – Johnny Cash. They got me to play the part.

Enjoy your Friday/Weekend everyone!

—b

2 Chronicles 20:17

Thursday, March 22nd, 2007/2 Chronicles chapters 20–22

GOD'S MESSAGE FOR ME TODAY
"'You need not fight in this battle; station yourselves, stand and see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem ' Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out to face them, for the LORD is with you." —2 Chronicles 20:17

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO MY LIFE?
How awesome is this! Judah and Jerusalem face a "great multitude" of enemies that they can't defeat. So they fast and pray and not only does God promise them victory, but He tells them to "stand and see" Him do it. They didn't even need to fight; God took care of it all! Behold the power of prayer!

Copyright 2007, City Vision / John A. Mayer
You can purchase a copy of the CityView Report here.

SPIRITUAL TWIN CITIES NOTEABLES
• There are 96 churches in the Twin Cities with 1,000 – 1,999 attendees.

Sympathy Sleep

A lot of guys gain "sympathy weight" when their wife is pregnant. (At least that's what their excuse is.) Me, I have "sympathy sleep". Since becoming pregnant, Erin has been tired early and often. Since Erin has become pregnant, I have been tired early and often.

Why?

I wish I knew. We are on elderly time...going to bed at 9:00! Even going to bed this early, I struggle getting up for devotions in the morning. It's actually kinda annoying. I know that after our son is born, it will be even worse and our schedules will be thrown into a tornado and spit back out again. Oh well, I'll keep fighting it and even add my sleep schedule to my prayer requests. (Funny prayer request isn't it?)

In somewhat related news...
Our doctor called yesterday to schedule the level 2 ultrasound. It's the 30th at 8:45. We haven't heard anything about Erin's bloodwork concerning the CPC's so were hoping no news is good news.

—b


Wednesday, March 21st, 2007/2 Chronicles chapters 13–19

GOD'S MESSAGE FOR ME TODAY
"For the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His." —2 Chronicles 16:9a

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO MY LIFE?
I find this passage both comforting and convicting. Comforting in that because I belong to Christ, I have His "strong support". Convicting because I wonder how often my heart is "completely His".

Copyright 2007, City Vision / John A. Mayer
You can purchase a copy of the CityView Report here.

SPIRITUAL TWIN CITIES NOTEABLES
• There are more Hispanic churches located in the suburbs than in Minneapolis and St. Paul combined.

Major League Soccer

While probably 95% of people are gearing up for opening day of Major League Baseball, the other 5% of us are looking forward to the "First Kick" of Major League Soccer (MLS). Don't get me wrong, I'm also looking forward to pro ball being played but I figure I'd give some attention to the overlooked MLS.

A brief background of Major League Soccer:
It started off of the hype of the 1996 World Cup (the one held here in the states). For the first eight or nine years of it's existance, MLS has struggled finanically. Most people had doomed the franchise the way of the failed North American Soccer League (NASL).

But recently has made deals with ESPN, Univision, Fox Soccer Channel, HDNet, and yes David Beckham. For the first time, MLS won't have to pay the TV exects to broadcast the games, it is now the other way around. With fan bases steadily increasing, stadiums being built exclusively for the clubs, and several other cities wanting teams, Major League Soccer has started taking bloom.


Anyway, sparatically over the past few years, my brother and I have competed in MFLS.com (Major Fantasay League Soccer). I have created a league and if you'd like to join, your welcome to. The cost is FREE. Click MFLS.com to visit the homepage and create a team. The league I created is called USMNT 1913.

I realize if you have never watched a MLS game before, trying to pick players to make a fantasy team would seem impossible. I'm not expecting anyone to join (which is why it's a public league) but you never know. Someone out there might be among the 5% who are really looking forward to this year's "First Kick".

—b

Tuesday, March 20th, 2007/2 Chronicles chapters 10–12

GOD'S MESSAGE FOR ME TODAY
When the kingdom of Rehoboam was established and strong, he and all Israel with him forsook the law of the LORD. —2 Chronicles 12:1

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO MY LIFE?
When things are going great for us, why is it that we are more ought to spend less time with God? Do we think we don't need Him as much when things are tough? And if that's the case, would it be better if God allowed life to be rough 100% of the time so that we would have a greater dependance on Him? I think it might be even more impressive to seek God and thank Him when all is well.

What do you think?

Copyright 2007, City Vision / John A. Mayer
You can purchase a copy of the CityView Report here.

SPIRITUAL TWIN CITIES NOTEABLES
• By definition, a new church plant is a church that is less than two years old. According to church growth expert C. Peter Wagner, "New churches are the best way to reach unchurched people."

Bracket Watching

This past weekend, Erin and I were blessed with the entire Johnson clan. We were able to spend some time with them at the Mall of America, Old Country Buffet, playing Scattergories, even watching some March Madness and Gopher hockey.

Sunday afternoon entailed a relaxing and sometimes dissapointing time watching our bracket picks succeed or fail. Kevin was able to sneek in a nap while J-Bone and I kept up with our competition online.


While the boys were watching college basketball downstairs, the girls had "Titanic" on upstairs while they rearranged our bedroom. Even Bella knew to join them. (Don't cha just love catching people off guard with a camera...Danae?) ;)

Even though March Madness dominates the news and most peoples time, I was much more interested in the Final Five tourny. Saturday night we witnessed the Gophers beating hated rivals UND in dramatic fashion. If you missed the game winning goal, you have to see it.




That miraculous goal was almost a deja vu of the 1979 Gopher/UND game when future Minnesota North Star, Neal Broten, did the same thing to win it all. Very cool.




—b

Monday, March 19th, 2007/2 Chronicles chapters 10 – ???

GOD'S MESSAGE FOR ME TODAY
I need to get back to my regular scheduled programing. ;)

Copyright 2007, City Vision / John A. Mayer
You can purchase a copy of the CityView Report here.

SPIRITUAL TWIN CITIES NOTEABLES
• 20,000 witches live in the Twin Cities. (This is one of the highest concentrations in the U.S.)

Choroid Plexus Cysts

(This is not our son, only a picture showing where the Choroid Plexus Cysts or CPC's are located.)

This mornings doctor appointment had good news and bad news.

It was shown on our ultrasound that our son has Choroid Plexus Cysts or CPC's. What are those? Below is an excerpt from an article found here.

The choroid plexus is an area of the brain that is not involved thinking or personality. Rather, the choroid plexus makes a fluid that protects and nourishes the brain and spinal cord. When a fluid-filled space is seen in the choroid plexus during an ultrasound, it is called a choroid plexus cyst (CPC). They can vary in size and shape, from small and round to large and irregular. Some fetuses have more than one.

Good News:

Regardless of their number, shape or size, choroid plexus cysts are not harmful to the baby. "I am not aware of a single instance where a CPC caused damage to a fetus," says Dr. Filly.

Dr. Peter Doubilet, a Professor of Radiology at Harvard Medical School, agrees, "That's one very important fact. CPCs are not harmful, and they nearly always go away by the third trimester of pregnancy."

Bad News:

CPCs have become associated with a severe genetic disease called Trisomy 18. (Trisomy 18 is basically a death sentence.) It is well documented that about half of babies with Trisomy 18 show a CPC on ultrasound.


"The vast majority of fetuses with [isolated] CPCs are completely normal, but when CPCs are seen, the chance of Trisomy 18 goes up," says Dr. Doubilet, "This risk is still very small: about 1 in 300." This means that if 300 fetuses have isolated CPCs, only one of them will have Trisomy 18. "While the risk is small, it is higher than the risk of approximately 1 in 3,000 among all pregnant women," points out Dr. Doubilet.

What does all this mean?

But even if an isolated CPC does mean an increased risk, that risk is still extremely small. The take-home message? If a CPC is found with no other warning signs, the outcome is virtually always positive.

Back to Erin and I, Erin had some more blood work done today and the results of that will tell us a little more. We are waiting from a call from a specialist where Erin will get a level 2 ultrasound. Other than that, all we can do is pray knowing God will get the glory in this situation.

(A level 2 ultrasound, also called a targeted ultrasound, this ultrasound is conducted specifically to look for particular markers based upon what was found in the initial ultrasound or triple screen.)

Erin and I appreciate any prayers on our behalf. After doing the research, I was encouraged. Erin on the other hand, had the oppositte effect. We thank God that He is in control!

—b



Friday, March 16th, 2007/2 Chronicles chapters 6 – ???

GOD'S MESSAGE FOR ME TODAY
This morning, we had a 9:40 doctor's appointment so I figured I'd sleep late and do my Bible study later in the morning. Well, I slept late...too late. Doh!

Copyright 2007, City Vision / John A. Mayer
You can purchase a copy of the CityView Report here.

SPIRITUAL TWIN CITIES NOTEABLES
• The 1960s has the largest portion of large size churches.

Temporary Bed Rest

(The following description is vague on purpose. I'm not sure how much Erin is comfortable sharing.)

Yesterday, Erin and I spent the majority part of the work day at the hospital. There was some pregnancy concerns but to make a long story short, we are waiting to see what's wrong. The biggest fear was Erin's placenta was tearing away from it's wall but after an ultrasound, that was found not to be the case. (Thank you God.)

Tomorrow we have a follow up to see what the blood work brings back. We are hoping for an infection or something that would be relatively common and not harmful to the baby.

A BIG plus to the ultrasound was we were able to find out the gender of the baby...it's a boy! As it turns out, he already has a personality trait from his father's side; he's stubborn. We were trying to get a good profile shot of him but after several attempts of poking, prodding, and even having Erin turn on her side, the little guy refused to budge. He found a comfy spot and no coaxing from us would make him move. The rebellion has started already.

Anyway, back to the profile shot, we were able to get a picture of his defiance. It's a picture of him squirming away and showing us his foot. Yep, one foot. (He does have two.)

Here is the same picture after I outlined his foot.

Oh well, like father like son.

—b



Thursday, March 15th, 2007/2 Chronicles chapters 1 – 5

GOD'S MESSAGE FOR ME TODAY
"The house which I am about to build will be great, for greater is our God than all the gods. But who is able to build a house for Him, for the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain Him? So who am I, that I should build a house for Him, except to burn incense before Him?" —2 Chronicles 2:5 & 6

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO MY LIFE?
Solomon does a good job at keeping things iin perspective. Basically saying the house he's about to build for God will be the best since God is worthy but what plat place could actually contain or even be worthy of Him. It's great that God accepts our offerings/time/presence even though our best will never be worthy of him. (Thank God for Jesus!)

Copyright 2007, City Vision / John A. Mayer
You can purchase a copy of the CityView Report here.

SPIRITUAL TWIN CITIES NOTEABLES
• In 2004, the Luis Palau Festival was held at the State Capital grounds in St. Paul with 200,000 attendees.